Articles Tagged With: FHA Refinance

May 1, 2018

Why Do People Refinance Home Loans?

Why do people refinance home loans? The answers are diverse since there is more than one reason to refinance AND more than one application for an FHA refi loan. Refinancing To Get Lower Monthly Payments One powerful motivation to refinance is to get a lower mortgage payment each month. Existing FHA mortgages can be refinanced into FHA Streamline Refinancing mortgages, which feature no FHA-required new credit check or appraisal. Your lender may require a credit check and/or appraisal if lender requirements or circumstances warrant. Some Streamline Refinance loans have to include a new credit check if the borrower chooses add-ons to the loan that increase monthly payments over a certain threshold. FHA Streamline Refinance loans must generally result in a tangible benefit to the borrower including a lower payment. Non-FHA | more...

the importance of credit for home loan approval

April 20, 2018

FHA Refinance Home Loans: Getting Ready

By Bruce Reichstein

Do you know what you need to get ready for an FHA refinance home loan application? There are several areas you can prepare in before it’s time to sign the loan application paperwork. Check Your Credit Reports-EARLY FHA refinance loans should be treated in the same way your original home loan application was handled in terms of checking credit, avoiding new lines of credit before and during the refinance loan process, and trying to lower your debt ratio before the application. Decide The Right Refi Loan For You Your preparations for the new loan may depend greatly on the type of FHA refinance loan you are looking for; cash-out, no cash out, Streamline Refinancing, rehab refi loan, etc. How are these loans different? There are too many aspects to discuss | more...

April 17, 2018

Streamline Refinance Loan Rules: Is Cash Back Permitted?

By Bruce Reichstein

Do FHA Streamline Refinance Loans permit cash back to the borrower? Can you apply for “more” refinance loan than you need to pay off the original mortgage and take that cash at closing time? The FHA Streamline Refinance loan is for existing FHA mortgages; borrowers who have an FHA loan who want to refinance in order to get a financial benefit such as a lower payment, shorter loan term, or get out of an adjustable rate mortgage should consider this as an option. But is one of the financial benefits offered the ability to get cash back? FHA refinance loan options do include cash-out refinancing, intended for FHA and non-FHA loans alike. Let’s examine what the FHA loan handbook, HUD 4000.1, has to say about cash back to the borrower | more...

April 17, 2018

FHA Streamline Refinance Loans: Tangible Benefits

By Joe Wallace

What are the tangible benefits of an FHA Streamline Refinance Loan? Believe it or not, that phrase is not just a clever way to say “Streamline refinance loans can help you lower your payments.” The phrase “tangible benefits” is found in the FHA loan handbook to describe an outcome of getting the loan. “Tangible benefits” means some distinct help for the FHA Streamline Refinance loan borrower in the form of a lower mortgage rate, a lower monthly payment, the ability to get into a fixed rate mortgage and out of an adjustable rate loan, etc. In most cases an FHA Streamline refi is meant to give the borrower one or more of these benefits. In fact, HUD 4000.1 has specific instructions to the lender on this issue; “The Mortgagee must | more...

April 2, 2018

FHA Refinance Loan Top Five Tips

By Bruce Reichstein

There are many things you’ll need to know if you are applying for an FHA refinance loan for the first time. Do you know what your options are to refinance? If you have an existing FHA or non-FHA loan, it is possible to refinance into an FHA mortgage with a fixed or adjustable rate, with cash back to the borrower or without cash back. Your refinance loan options are more diverse than you might think. 5. Refinance Your Home Loan With Your Current Lender OR Find A New Financial Institution Refinancing into an FHA mortgage does NOT require you to stay with your current bank. Any participating lender willing to work with you can process your FHA refinance loan paperwork. You are not required to use the original lender to | more...

Rehab Refinance Loans, reverse mortgages

March 14, 2018

Reasons To Refinance With An FHA Mortgage

By Bruce Reichstein

Reasons to refinance your home loan with an FHA mortgage vary as much as the types of homes you can purchase with an FHA loan. Is now the right time to examine your refi loan options and start planning for your new loan? You might be ready for an FHA refinance option if one or more of the following applies to you. Refinance Loans For Those Who Want A Lower Interest Rate Depending on the nature of your original home loan, FHA refi loans could help you save money over the lifetime of your mortgage loan with lower interest rates. One thing that’s easy to overlook about the interest rate options available with FHA loans; what you are offered will depend at least in part on FICO scores and other | more...

FHA Mortgage Loans: Do Interest Rates Matter?

March 13, 2018

When Should I Refinance With An FHA Mortgage?

By Joe Wallace

When should I refinance with an FHA mortgage? That is a question many home owners face, especially if their financial plans have changed from the ones the borrower had when closing the original mortgage. Do you know if it is a good time to refinance? If you need lower payments or interest rates, and are credit-qualified to receive those lower rates, it may be the right time to explore your options. FHA Refinancing For Borrowers In Adjustable Rate Mortgages Some FHA borrowers buy a home with an adjustable rate loan, either thinking they will sell before the introductory rate ends (or before the rates are adjusted beyond a certain threshold) or refinance the loan at some later date. FHA ARM loan adjustments may be more conservative than some conventional loan | more...

February 28, 2018

Know Your FHA Loan Options

By Joe Wallace

Do you know your FHA home loan options? There are many things you can do with an FHA mortgage and buying a new home is just one of them. You can use an FHA home loan to buy, refinance, rehab, or upgrade a principal residence, with lower down payments and protections for the borrower when paying off early. FHA New Home Loans Did you know you can use an FHA mortgage to buy an existing home or have one built for you from the ground up? Buying an existing property is one of the most common uses of an FHA mortgage, but you can apply for an FHA One-Time Close Construction Loan (also known as an FHA Construction-To-Permanent loan) using an approved builder to have a house built brand new. | more...

February 15, 2018

Should I Refinance My Home Loan With An FHA Mortgage?

By Bruce Reichstein

Should I refinance my home with an FHA mortgage? There are several reasons why it’s good to consider your FHA options when it’s time to start planning a refi loan. I Want To Refinance To Get A Lower Interest Rate If you pay attention to online mortgage loan interest rate reports, you’ll see that in general FHA mortgage loan rates are lower than their conventional counterparts. The interest rate issue can be hard for some to understand because they see these rates compared side-by-side and assume those numbers are at or near what they will be offered if they applied at that moment. But interest rates are negotiated between the borrower and lender for FHA refinance loans, and a borrower’s credit plays a large part in determining what interest rates | more...

January 16, 2018

Are FHA Refinance Loans Only For FHA Mortgages?

By Bruce Reichstein

Are FHA refinance loans only used to refinance existing FHA mortgages? The answer might surprise you, and we should begin by dispelling a long-time myth about FHA home loans and FHA refinance loans in the process. FHA Refinance Loans Are Open To All Financially Qualified Borrowers FHA loans have no income limit, and are not specifically targeted at one type of borrower. There is an impression that only first-time borrowers or first-time refinance loan applicants will be considered for FHA loan approval, but this is NOT TRUE. FHA loans require a minimum FICO score, have no income minimum or maximum, and have more generally lenient application requirements than many conventional mortgages. You cannot earn “too much” to be considered for an FHA mortgage. Your income is measured against your monthly | more...